Meet the first literary vampire and his creator(s)

The same Swiss getaway that spawned Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein generated another historic (but much less famous) spooky tale.

Dr. John William Polidori had accompanied Lord Byron and Shelley to Lake Geneva and even participated in their scary-story competition.

His first attempt was a bit underwhelming, but given time, encouragement, inspiration, and a fit of pique, Polidori would go on to create the first literary vampire.

Read the whole gory plot — and the drama that surrounded its publication — on Literary Hub.